My appologies in the delay in posting this blog post. We have the wonderful K.M. Neuhold stopping by Love bytes to talk about new release “From Ashes”.
K.M talks about living the dream of being a writer, there is also an exclusive excerpt and a giveaway!
Welcome K.M. 🙂

“When the broken man with scarred skin walked into Heathens, asked for a job, and showed me a sketch of a phoenix, it felt like fate.”~ Adam

It started with an anonymous post by someone who didn’t want to live anymore. I read it over and over again, unable to get it out of my mind. What if my brother Johnny had posted something like this before he’d taken his own life? Would someone have been able to save him?

I’ve been living a lie for 16 long years and I’m not sure how much longer I’ll be able to keep it up. And when a beautiful, broken man walks into my tattoo shop asking for a second chance at life, I know I’ll never be able to turn him away.

“When I was so far down I couldn’t even see the light, a stranger reached in to save me”~ Nox

I didn’t have anything to live for, until a kind stranger pulled me back from the brink. With physical and emotional scars I have nowhere to turn now but to that same stranger who saved my life without realizing it. But as my feelings for Adam grow, will I ever be anything other than a surrogate for the brother he couldn’t save? Am I even worthy of his love?

**From Ashes is the third book in the Heathens Ink series, each book in the series CAN be read as a standalone.

CAUTION: this book contains graphic descriptions of domestic violence and drug use that may be disturbing to some readers.

Living The Dream:

My Journey to Becoming a Full Time Author

When you tell people you’re an author, there are many questions people have. But, one of the most common questions is: How long have you been writing? That’s a difficult question for me because it depends what you mean. If you mean novels, then I’ve been writing since I was about sixteen. If you mean any writing at all, then probably about ten. But, I’ve been telling stories—mainly to myself—for as long as I can remember. Throughout my adolescence I had many different answers to the question “what do you want to be when you grow up?”, but in my heart there was only one true answer. I wanted to be an author.

I published my first book in August of 2015 and I had no clue what I was doing. I self-edited (cringe) and my sister designed the cover (she’s an artist so that wasn’t so bad!), and I didn’t know the first thing about marketing. I believe I sold six total copies in the first six months. But I was a published author! And I was so unbelievably proud.

Over the past two and a half years, it’s been a wild journey. I switched genres and learned a few dozen things about writing and marketing, and I made so many incredible friends. And over the past nine months, something even more amazing has happened. I went from starry eyed newbie to an author with a back catalogue and a following. And now, the day I’ve been waiting for my entire life is only five weeks away. I’m quitting my day job to write full-time!

I always thought the decision to become a full-time author would be easy. I just told you it’s been my dream my entire life! Unfortunately, it was anything but.

Nine short months ago I finished college with a degree in Animal Science with a heap of student loan debt and no real idea what I would even do with the degree. It’s a bit depressing but also felt like I fit in with just about everyone I know my age. Almost all my friends spend their weekends lamenting their pointless, soul-sucking day jobs and their mounds of student loan debt they’ll never pay off. But it’s expected. It’s what you’re supposed to do in your late twenties. What you’re not supposed to do is throw away a steady paycheck to gamble on a dream. What about health insurance? What if the next book I put out only sells six copies again? What if the sky falls and Amazon does something to make author’s lives even harder?? These thoughts went around and around in my mind, and as the date draws closer they’re still there. It’s true, there’s absolutely zero guarantee that this will work out. I’ve seen many authors return to the work force after their writing career didn’t work out as they’d hoped. But if not now, when? If I’m not willing to bet on myself, then who else will?

Luckily, I have an enormously supportive family and husband who are more than willing to tell me that the only failure in life is not trying. I might fail. I might be crawling back to my day job in six months, begging for my crappy job back. Or, maybe, I’ll be living my dream.

The air in the room seems to shift as our laughter fades. I look over at Adam and find him looking back.

His eyes flick over my face like he’s searching for something and the crease between his brows makes me wonder what he’s thinking so hard about. I wonder for the millionth time how he kisses, what his lips taste like. I’ve never been this obsessed with kissing before but my brain is like a broken record lately.

Our mutual approach is slow and measured, like we’re both afraid to scare the other off if we move too fast.

His breath smells like chocolate as it bathes my face and my hands start to tremble. I mentally send out a prayer to every deity I can think of not to let Adam come to his senses until after I get the chance to kiss him and know what it feels like for just a few seconds.

When his lips finally ghost against mine it’s like an electric jolt to every nerve ending. Then, he lets out a defeated sound and crushes his lips against mine and my heart nearly explodes out of my chest.

The kiss is sweet and exploratory as his tongue sweeps against my lips, seeking access. I open to him without hesitation, looping my arms around the back of his neck and pulling myself flush against him.

My skin feels like it’s the only thing keeping me from bursting into a million beams of light.

Adam’s hands gently roam my body. Not harsh and demanding like I’m used to, but reverently. Each breathy sound that falls from his lips between kisses burrows into my heart to make a permanent home.

Adam pulls his lips from mine and I whimper in protest. He presses his forehead against mine as we both attempt to catch our breath.

“I’m so sorry. God that was so inappropriate,” Adam laments in a pained tone.

“No.” I clutch desperately at the front of his shirt, unwilling to let him pull away. “Please, don’t tell me that the best moment of my life was a mistake.”

“I don’t care. Please, Adam, give it a chance. Give us a chance?” I don’t know what’s making me so bold, but now that I’ve had a taste of what it can feel like to have someone care about you, I can’t let it go, not without a fight.

“Okay,” Adam breathes after a second and I nearly cry in relief before scrambling into his lap and kissing him again.

More confident now, my tongue sweeps along the inside of Adam’s hot mouth. His hands grip my hips and then wander up my back, underneath my shirt. I shiver at the contact of his rough fingers against my skin.

As our kissing drags on with no attempt on Adam’s part to get my clothes off I start to feel out of my depth. I don’t think he’s been with a guy before so am I supposed to let him set the pace? Or, is he assuming I’ll lead? Then something else occurs to me…it’s only fair for me to tell Adam the full extent of my past before he makes the decision to be in a sexual relationship with me.

I force myself to end the kiss and lean back on his lap.

I’m an author of m/m and new adult romance. I have a strong passion for writing characters with a lot of heart and soul, and a bit of humor as well.